LibGuides: Standards: What are standards?

Standards

"Standards are agreed ways of doing something, written down as a set of precise criteria so they can be used as rules, guidelines or definitions". (BSI/British Standards Institution)

Standards are applied to many materials, products, methods and services, and are cretaed by industry experts to share best practice. They are designed for voluntary use and do not impose any regulations. However, laws and regulations may refer to certain standards, making compliance with them compulsory.

Health and Safety standards aimed at workplace safety are a well known example, but you will find standards operating across many activities of daily life, for example IT standards to keep data safe, food safety standards to protect against contamination, engineering standards to ensure consistency, quality and compatibility across manufactured materials and many more.

The standards are laid out in a published specification that establishes a common language and an agreed, repeatable way of doing an activity or process.

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To enhance the safety, reliability and quality of products and services.
To harmonize technical specifications of products and services, thus making industry more efficient and breaking down technical barriers to trade.
To save costs by optimising operations.
To promote the interoperability of products and services.
As a resource for the development of regulations by governments.

Checklist Standards are designed for voluntary use, and do not impose any regulations.

However, laws and regulations may refer to certain standards and make compliance compulsory.

Observation of certain standards is often a requirement in order to comply legally with a contract.

Specification: highly prescriptive; the detailed absolute requirements for a product, material, process, service or system, and the procedures for checking conformity; the most commonly used standard.
Method: highly prescriptive; an agreed way of measuring, testing or specifying what is reliably repeatable in different circumstances and places
Guide: advice which reflects the current thinking and practice among subject experts.
Vocabulary: set of terms and definitions to help harmonize the use of language in a particular sector, field or discipline.
Code of Practice: recommendations for accepted good practice; incorporates a degree of flexibility in application.
Classification: designations and descriptions of different grades of a product.

Usually in response to a request from industry or stakeholders, such as consumer groups.

They are drafted by a panel of international experts within a technical committee.

All aspects of the standard, including scope, key definitions and content, are negotiated by the panel.

Development is through formal stages of drafting and consultation, aimed at achieving consensus and maximum stakeholder input.

British Standards are usually developed within 12–15 months; international standards take around 3 years.